Fortuna Books
by DragonLady37
Summary: "That is so cheesy," Hermione said, smiling broadly. Then, feeling brave, she said, "I like cheesy." "It's a good look for you," Draco said, tucking a curl around the flower, his finger barely brushing her cheek. "Ready to go?" He offered her his arm. She took it, leaning into him a little more than was necessary, and nodded. "Let's go." / Muggle AU, DRAMIONE, M for sexual content
1. Fortuna Books

**I've been reading a lot of Muggle AU fiction, so I thought I'd try my hand at it. Rated M for adult scenes! So, please don't read if you're underage.**

_Beta: Bella Luna 92 (aka the BEST ever)._

* * *

Fortuna Books was a quaint little shop just off of Diagon Alley. The owner, Hermione Granger, kept the store stocked with the latest biographies, novels, and books of poetry, along with a number of classics. She had two employees who traded off closing at night, but Hermione liked the mornings in the shop for herself.

It was March and warmer than usual. The foot traffic outside was sparse, but she expected to get a few people in before her shift ended at four. In the meantime, she leaned over the counter and let herself get lost in some classic science fiction.

The bell over the door rang and Hermione looked up from her novel. She smiled and her heart did a little flip when a familiar blonde stepped into the shop.

"Morning, Granger," he said with a smile as he walked toward her. When he reached her, he leaned onto the counter. She leaned back and crossed her arms, but the smile on her face was broad.

"Here for another book, Draco? You bought one not two days ago." She smirked at him and he grinned.

"Of course I'm here for a book. Why else would I come in so often?" He winked at her and she laughed.

"Well, let's find you one then." She walked from behind the counter straight to the fiction shelves near the back. "Let's see. The last book you bought from me was fantasy, right? Tolkien I think? How about some science fiction next!" Hermione turned and scanned the shelves, feeling him walk beside her, just close enough to feel his body heat without actually touching.

"What were you reading, Granger? When I walked in?" He leaned toward her under the pretense of reading the spines of books beside her. She felt her face heat pleasantly with his proximity. When she stepped away to look at books further down the shelf, he followed close beside her.

"A book by Frank Herbert called Dune. It's science fiction, and very complex. It might be a little over your head." She turned and smirked at him. He laughed, then he reached out to tuck a stray curl behind her ear. She felt her face heat. He'd been doing things like that more and more lately and each time, she wasn't sure how to react.

"I'll take a copy, then." He smiled and tucked his hands into his jean pockets. "I was wondering if maybe you'd have dinner with me to discuss it. Since it's so very complex." His cheeks were pink and his eyes were wide in a false nonchalance.

For weeks, since the first time he'd walked into her shop looking for a cookbook, they'd been flirting. Hermione was a modern woman and had almost asked him to dinner or coffee a few times, but something had held her back, some little voice in the back of her head telling her to stay away. But now, he'd done it. A smile stretched across her face.

"I'd really love that," she said, trying to resist the urge to bounce on the balls of her feet like a child. He grinned in return, his alabaster skin showing his blush in a way that made Hermione want to touch his cheek to see what it felt like.

"Brilliant," he said, rocking from his heel to his toes and back again.

Hermione grabbed a paperback copy of Dune and took it to the front. As she rang it up, he leaned back on the counter. She couldn't seem to wipe the grin from her face. They were finally going to go to dinner, to spend time together not in Fortuna. But when?

Well, he'd made the first move, so she would make second. "How does tonight sound? For dinner?" She didn't meet his eyes as she tucked his receipt into the book - she liked to use them as bookmarks - and carefully dropped it into a paper bag.

"I'm not sure I'll have time to read much by then," he said. She glanced up at him, disappointed, and saw that he was smiling, his gray eyes bright. "But maybe you could give me some background. On Herbert, or the story. Or something. Anything, really." He seemed a little breathless.

"Perfect." She handed him the book. "I'm off work at 4," she said, feeling very brave. For the first time since she'd opened her shop - so long ago, she could barely remember - she wanted her shift to end early.

"I'll pick you up at your flat at 5:30," he said. "We can grab drinks before dinner. If you'd like."

"Very much so," she said, scribbling her address onto the back of a business card for the shop and handing it to him. He smiled at her and she was no longer able to hold back her desire to bounce on the balls of her feet the smallest bit.

"All right. See you then, Granger." He smiled in a way that made her knees tremble, and he left.

* * *

Hermione stared in the full-length mirror in her small bedroom, twisting this way and that. She'd tried on at least ten outfits, settling on an emerald green summer dress that cinched at the waist and flowed out from her hips to just above her knees. Some silvery sandals and matching earrings tied the look together, along with some light makeup. Her hair, which she'd always had trouble managing, was contained in a loose ponytail off to the side, resting on her shoulder and cascading toward her waist. She took a deep breath, a moment away from changing the whole ensemble - she wasn't used to dressing like this - when she heard a knock at her door.

One last look at herself - it would have to do - and she grabbed her tiny, beaded bag, which was just large enough for her cell phone, keys, and wallet, and went to answer it.

She opened the door. On the other side stood Draco, wearing charcoal gray slacks, a white button-down, and a burgundy tie. In his hand, he held a bouquet of daisies, her favorite flower.

His eyes popped open wide when he saw her, and she felt a blush color her bare shoulders and creep up past the thin straps of her dress.

"Wow," he said. Then, as if remembering himself, he held out the flowers. "For you."

She took them and smiled. "Would you like to come in while I put these in water?" she asked, and he nodded. He followed her into her small flat, closing the door behind him. She retrieved a tall vase from beneath the kitchen sink, and after putting the flowers in it, filled it with water from the tap.

"So, where are we going?" she asked, placing the flowers on her small kitchen table, right where they might catch some light and would be seen anytime she walked in this room.

"I thought we might get drinks at The Leaky Tankard." Draco joined her and carefully plucked one of the shorter daisies from the vase. He pressed it against a cloth napkin on the table, drying the stem, before he carefully tucked it behind one of her ears. She laughed lightly and reached up to feel it.

"That was a little cheesy," she said, smiling broadly. Then, feeling brave, she said, "I like cheesy."

"It's a good look for you," he said, tucking a curl around the flower, his finger barely brushing her cheek. "Ready to go?" He offered her his arm.

She took it, leaning into him a little more than was necessary, and nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

Drinks at The Leaky were lovely. Draco talked her into trying a new flavored beer - butterscotch flavored - and it was wonderful. They didn't talk about the book, but Draco told her all about his childhood, growing up in a stuffy, wealthy home, and how he'd rebelled in small ways that drove his mother crazy. Hermione had never laughed so much in her life. And dinner afterwards was wonderful as well. He'd taken her to a small restaurant that had a rustic theme and various old brooms hung on the walls. The whole space was lit by chandeliers that boasted tapered candles instead of light bulbs. He managed to hold her hand through over half of the meal and she'd never felt so at ease with another person.

They walked back to her flat after dinner and Hermione felt jitters settle into her stomach. His fingers were intertwined with hers and she wished, for a moment, that it were cooler out so she would have an excuse to snuggle in closer to him. March was supposed to be cool, but it was almost oppressively warm.

As if he sensed her thoughts, he slipped his hand from hers and draped his arm over her shoulders. She sighed as she leaned her head against him, the flower still nestled snugly behind her ear.

Too soon, they reached the door to her flat, and she regretfully pulled away. Hermione Granger did not invite a man into her flat after one date, and she wouldn't invite him in, but oh, how she wanted to, even if it was just to keep talking with him.

"I had a really wonderful time," she said, holding her small purse in both hands.

"Will you come out with me again, then?" He didn't seem at all embarrassed to be so eager, the smile on his face almost childlike.

With a matching smile that lit up her whole face she nodded. "I don't work at the shop tomorrow," she said breathlessly.

Draco stepped toward her and his hands drifted up to her face. He cupped her cheeks as if afraid she might break. "Brunch, then?" His thumb gently caressed her cheekbone, and she shivered.

"Sounds lovely." She swallowed, fighting the urge to lick her lips. How she wanted to kiss him.

He looked down at her mouth, wet his bottom lip with just the tip of his tongue, and leaned toward her. She met him halfway, pressing her lips to his. Her purse fell from her hands as his hands moved to her waist. Her hands went up, around his neck, and she let herself give in to an urge she'd had for weeks - to feel his soft, white-blonde hair. It was just as soft as she'd imagined and she sifted it through her fingers.

His hands slipped around her waist to her lower back and he pulled her closer. He opened his mouth, letting his tongue tease her lips, and she tilted her head, opening her mouth to him. She had to fight back a groan as his tongue massaged hers in a way that felt sinfully good. His grip on her waist tightened and her hands fell from his hair to his broad shoulders, trying to hold him more tightly against her. She could feel static all around, crackling with energy. This was what all those romance novels meant when they said a kiss was electric. She gripped his shoulders, fighting the urge to ask him to come inside, knowing it was too soon, wishing it weren't.

Again, as if reading her thoughts, he slowed their kiss, pressing multiple small kisses against her now swollen lips. As he pulled away, he let his forehead lean against hers as they both caught their breath.

"I've been waiting a very long time to do that, Granger," he said, kissing her again for good measure.

"Me too," she said breathlessly.

"If I'd know you felt the same, I would have asked you to dinner much, much sooner." He laughed lightly.

She laughed, too, and leaned away, not yet relinquishing her grip on his shoulders. "Wasn't I obvious?" she asked, not caring that her hair was mussed or her cheeks were red.

He shrugged and pulled her close again. "I thought you might be interested, but there was something in the back of my mind, like a little voice, that kept urging me not to ask you. To stay away."

"Then why did you ask? Why keep coming to Fortuna?" she asked, genuinely curious. What he was describing reminded her of the feeling she'd had about him - the one that she very much did not want to listen to.

"You're very hard to resist," he said, his voice husky as he kissed her again, this time slow and deep. When he pulled away, Hermione sighed, a stupidly happy smile on her face.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then? For brunch?" She really wanted to invite him in.

"I'll be here at 10 sharp," he said, then leaned down and kissed her once more, a simple press of lips.

"I can't wait." She was breathless.

They released each other and Draco bent to retrieve her dropped bag. Hermione blushed as he handed it to her, and gave him a wave with her fingers as he walked away, a happy spring in his steps.

* * *

The next few weeks went by in a blurry of dates and kisses and laughter. They had brunch, and the next day they went to a movie. The day after that, they had dinner, again, and after that, a day spent on a hike. Every day, actually, they spent time together, learning one another, never tiring of the other's company.

A month after their first date, and they'd spent a portion of every single day together. For tonight's date, Hermione had invited him over for dinner - takeout, as she was a rubbish cook - and a movie that she let him choose.

He showed up at 6:30 with a DVD of the 1984 classic Dune, and she laughed. "We never did discuss the book, you know," she said, taking the movie and kissing his cheek.

"Yes, well, we had more important things to do," he said as he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her to him, kissing her deeply. She smiled against his mouth.

"Much more important things." She stepped away and gestured to the small kitchen table. The daisies he'd given her that first night had wilted, and he'd replaced them with carnations, and when those wilted, a bouquet of wildflowers. "For tonight's dinner, I've gone all out," she said, motioning toward the cartons of Thai. "My culinary skills cannot be surpassed." She put her hands on her hips as if daring him to argue.

He laughed, a sound that made her insides turn to jelly, and bowed slightly. "I feel very underdressed for such a lavish meal," he said, motioning to his jeans and fitted tee-shirt. She laughed, her hand trailing up the ugly tattoo on his forearm. One of the moments of rebellion he'd told her about that first night. His friends had gotten him drunk and convinced the tattoo artist he was of age, then convinced him to get a skull with a snake coming out of its mouth. It gave her the willies when she'd first seen it, but she'd gotten used to it and barely even noticed it.

"You are completely underdressed," she deadpanned, then smiled. "But I'll forgive you." She was wearing something similar, a tunic shirt that brushed her bum and yoga pants that were cropped at the knee. Her hair was up in a bun, held together with a thick wooden stick that looked like a piece of vine, sharper at one end than the other. She didn't remember where she'd gotten it, but it was perfect for holding up her bun when she couldn't find an elastic.

Draco took her hand and dragged her to the table where they ate with her feet in his lap.

After dinner, while Draco got the movie ready, Hermione made microwave popcorn. She joined him on the couch, snuggling comfortably into his side, and laid the popcorn bowl on his lap where they could both reach it. They'd watched movies together before, the first one being a scary movie that made her bury her face in his chest and hide her eyes. Later, he'd admitted he'd chosen a scary movie for that very reason. In the weeks since their first date and subsequent first kiss, they'd grown close, and that stay away feeling they'd both felt when they first met had disappeared.

The movie started, and before it was even a quarter of the way through, they were both in tears from laughing so hard. The story was good, but a movie from the 80s just didn't hold up to their standards. After thirty minutes, Hermione had to just turn it off. She wiped tears away from her eyes as she laughed, pushing stop on the remote. "It really is a wonderful book," she said as she clicked the telly off.

"You can pick the movie next time," he said, pulling her back to him on the couch, wrapping his arm around her as she snuggled into his side.

"Deal," she said, her hand resting on his chest. Next time.

As if struck by a bolt of lightning, Hermione realized she and Draco had never had the talk. The one where they defined their relationship. They made plans to be together every day. During the days she worked, he came to Fortuna Books and saw her after. On the days that she didn't, they spent time in her flat, or going out to dinner, or walking down Diagon Alley for ice cream, filling up almost every stray minute with each other. But in all of that, he'd never said what she was to him and a sliver of fear - that he wasn't in this for the same reasons she was - spiked through her.

"Hermione," he said, and she jerked her head up to meet his gaze. "What's on your mind? You had your thinking face on." He kissed her nose and she blushed.

"You'll think I'm daft," she said, burying her face into his soft tee-shirt and inhaling his scent - fresh linen with a hint of something spicy.

"Impossible," he said, gently rubbing her shoulder.

"Well, I was just wondering - " she paused and leaned back to look at him, his arm still loosely around her. "It's just, you and I have never really defined what it is we are." Her cheeks heated as thoughts whirled around in her head. What if this was too needy? Too clingy? What if he was seeing someone else? What if he was just having a good time and didn't want to put any labels on what they were? What if, what if, what if.

He regarded her thoughtfully. "Well," he kept rubbing her arm, "I can tell you that, since our first date, I haven't been seeing anyone else. Or, actually, since before that. Since we met." He grinned and shrugged. "I can tell you that I want to be around you, and really only you, all the time. That when we're apart, all I think about is you." He shrugged again, a sure sign he was nervous. "What about you?" He looked as nervous as she felt. "What are we to you?"

Hermione felt her heart hammering against her ribs. She grinned and leaned a little closer, propping her hands on his chest so that she could still see his face. "I haven't been seeing anyone else either," she said breathlessly. "I don't want to see anyone else," she said bravely. "I only want to be with you."

Draco grinned and captured her lips. "So," he said, as he pulled away, "You're my girlfriend then." Her breath caught.

"I suppose so. Only if you're my boyfriend," she said with a huge smile. He pulled her close again and kissed her.

Hermione, feeling brave, pushed him back until they were lying on the couch. She'd never been so forward with him, though she'd wanted to do this since long before their first kiss. His hands roamed over her back, and when his hands brushed the top of her bum she pressed into him, urging him to continue.

He groaned and slipped the stick from her hair, discarding it on the floor as his hands dug into her curls to hold her face against his.

After a moment she stood, startling him as he lay prone on the couch, chest heaving. She pulled him up, attacking his lips with her own before he could wonder what she was doing, and started dragging him back toward her bedroom. When he realized where they were headed, he grabbed her just under her bum and lifted her. Her legs went around his waist as he walked them down the hall, nudging open her bedroom door with his foot, and kicking it closed behind him.

He let her down then, but she didn't move away from him. He ran his fingers through her hair and up and down her sides, lifting the sides of her tunic to let his fingers trail along the soft skin there. She shivered as she pulled his tee-shirt from the hem of his pants and let her fingers span the smooth, warm skin of his lower back. He growled into her mouth as he stepped away and took it off in a rush.

His chest was pale and broad and she ran her hands over it as he caught her mouth again. There was a scar on his chest - jagged and ugly that made her heart ache - but his lips on hers made her forget it quickly.

The intensity of their kiss made her want to rip the rest of his clothes off. She felt out of control, and she hated being out of control. Again, as if he could read her mind, he slowed, never breaking away, until they were kissing slowly and deeply. It made the heat in her belly grow hotter and she moaned into his mouth as she ran her fingers over his jaw and up into his hair.

He released her mouth and began trailing kisses across her jaw and down her neck. She let her head fall back as his warm mouth sent tingles to her toes. His chest was solid and warm and suddenly she needed to feel his skin against hers.

She went to reach for the hem of her tunic, but he beat her to it. With warm hands he dipped under the hem of the tunic and dragged his hands upward, fingers leaving a hot trail from her waist up. He released his mouth's grip on her neck long enough to slip the tunic over her head and drop it behind them. His mouth resumed its journey down her throat, moving down toward her breasts. His hands behind her unhooked her bra and it fell just before his warm, wet mouth enveloped her. She gasped as his velvety tongue covered her hardened nipple and stroked it. Her fingers tightened in his hair.

Abruptly, he released her breast and kissed her mouth again. Their hands moved as if in tandem. Her fingers moved to his belt, releasing it, and undoing his jeans so they could fall to the floor. His fingers slipped under the band of her yoga leggings. He pushed them down her thighs, falling to his knees and peppering kisses along her breasts and belly as he went. While there, after she'd stepped out of her pants, he hooked the sides of her panties with his index fingers and dragged them down her thighs. She shivered when she felt his hot breath across her most intimate place. He kissed the crease where her thigh met her waist and she squirmed pleasantly.

He stood then, ridding himself of his boxer briefs as he did so. She stepped into him, pressing their bodies together, and felt his smooth, hardened length against her leg.

When he kissed her again, it was slow, and she melted against him, loving the feel of his hot skin on hers. They walked in tandem toward the bed, and just as their thighs bumped into it, he pulled away and looked into her eyes.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, his voice deep with longing. "We can stop if you want. Go back and watch the movie." His breaths were ragged. She ached with want upon hearing the desire in his voice.

"Do you want to stop?" She gently nipped his lower lip, her own eyes blazing.

"No," he said, breathing heavy.

"Me either."

That was all he needed. He attacked her mouth again and pulled her back onto the bed, rolling so that she was beneath him. He kissed her lips, her neck, her breasts. She gasped in surprise when she felt his hand trail from her breast, down her belly, toward her aching center. He brushed a single finger over her lightly, and when her hips bucked toward his hand, he gently slipped it inside.

After that, things moved in a blur of pleasure. She grabbed a condom from the drawer beside her bed and hastily sheathed him, despite being distracted by his hand, working her into a frenzy.

"Please, Draco," she said, pulling his hand from inside her and rolling so that he was pressed right up against her. "Please," she breathed.

He looked right into her eyes, brushed her hair behind her ear, and then slowly slipped fully inside her.

They both gasped with the contact and were still for a long moment, savoring the feeling. Draco leaned down and kissed her almost lazily, pulling her bottom lip into his mouth before letting it pop out again. And then, time sped up again. It was as if they were of one mind, moving and rolling together like ocean waves. Speeding up and slowing down to draw out this feeling, this moment, as long as they could. She wanted it to last as long as it could, but as he moved against her, she could feel the heat in her belly building toward her peak. Hermione moaned his name as she got close.

"With me?" she asked, hardly able to speak, as she met his molten stare. He nodded, capturing her lips - salty from their sweat - and sped up his pace.

It only took a moment before the heat building in her belly reached its climax, and suddenly she was floating, her thighs clenched around Draco's hips, her mouth open in a silent scream. She felt him press into her, deeper than he'd been yet, shaking, as he too reached the end. He pressed his forehead into her shoulder and she heard him gasp.

After a moment, they both went boneless, still wrapped together. Draco rolled them so he wasn't putting all of his weight on her and stared at her face. Their breaths came in short pants, and Hermione reached up to push sweaty curls off of her face. Draco smiled at her as he traced the line of her hip with his fingers.

"I like being your boyfriend," he said, and she laughed, smacking his chest before settling against him.

"Being your girlfriend definitely seems to have its perks." She kissed his chest over the jagged scar, making a mental note to ask him about it later. He was damp with sweat, but that spicy-sweet smell still clung to him. "Will you stay the night with me?" she asked, her voice quiet.

He kissed her hair and settled himself around her. "I'll stay as many nights as you'll let me."

* * *

After three more months, Draco told her he loved her and she asked him to move in. They spent their evenings exploring each other - their bodies, their pasts, their dreams. She learned every scar on his body, and he learned hers. There was one particular set of scars on her forearm - lines and scratches from a fall in a rose bush when she was six. When she squinted, she thought it made out letters, or maybe numbers, but knew that was nonsense. Draco would often kiss these scars, one at a time, and say that one day, he would be able to kiss them away. Six months after he moved in, they started talking about marriage. They were blissfully happy in their little bubble.

Until one night in mid-December, when everything changed.

Their little flat was decorated with soft, colorful lights, and their tree twinkled beside the window. Hermione woke when she heard the sound of glass breaking. They'd recently gotten a fluffy orange kitten that had a bad habit of knocking things off the kitchen table. Rather than wake Draco, she slipped from bed to check on the cat and clean up the mess. In the kitchen, the vase with Draco's latest floral gift - lovely roses - was on the floor, water and red petals everywhere.

"Silly kitten," she said with a sigh. She turned toward the kitchen to get a towel to clean it up and screamed before she could even take a step.

The shadow of a man lunged at her, and she fell back, scrambling on the floor. Draco streaked into the room, clad in boxer briefs, hair wild from sleep.

"Hermione!" he yelled, diving for the man. Hermione had fallen back against the couch. She scrambled to stand, and her hand felt something hard and ropey on the floor just beneath the couch. Her hair stick. It must have rolled under the couch that first night they'd made love. She'd forgotten about it. She grabbed it, as nothing else was nearby that could be used as a weapon, and stood, pointing it at the intruder in a way that made her feel foolish and strong all at once.

Draco was wrestling with him, his pale skin glowing in the moonlight. The man wore a black ski mask, made to look like a skull. It reminded her of Draco's tattoo. Hot tears streamed down her face as she watched them fight, the man in black overpowering Draco.

The man finally knocked Draco off of him. His head hit the corner of the coffee table and he went limp.

"No!" she screamed, falling toward him, covering his body with her own, her hair-stick still pointed toward the man as if it were a sword.

"What're you gunna do with that, bitch?" The man's voice was gravelly and deep and made her shiver with fear. He lifted a gun that she hadn't seen and pointed it, not at her, but at Draco.

A feeling, hot and insistent, grew in her gut. He was going to hurt Draco, the love of her life. He was going to take him away from her. She felt that heat move up toward the hand that held the stick. He pulled back the hammer of his gun and all conscious thought left her.

"Avada Kedavra!" She shouted the nonsense words, and a blinding green light shot from the end of the stick and the man crumpled where he stood.

Hermione was in shock for half a second, before Draco's weight on her lap brought her back. The stick fell from her hand and she shifted so that she could hold Draco's face. Moonlight poured in, illuminated his features - his long nose, his high cheekbones. He was still breathing, though blood seeped from a wound on the back of his head, staining his beautiful hair dark.

"Draco," she said, stroking his cheeks. "Draco, please. Wake up." She leaned down and kissed his lips. "Please, I can't be without you."

As if by magic, his eyes started to flutter. He groaned and his hand went to his head, and she laughed, pressing her tear-covered lips to his.

"Where is he?" he asked, squinting as he sat.

She helped him, holding him to her, and pointed to the man lying off to the side.

"How?" His mouth was dry and he pulled her to his side as if afraid she might disappear. "What happened?"

"I'm not sure." With fingers that shook, she retrieved the vine-like stick. "I did something with this." Her tears still fell, but they were slowing. "I pointed it at him - " she felt panic rising as the past few minutes caught up with her. They didn't make sense. "And I yelled something, made up words, and - " she hiccuped as the panic truly set in. "And there was a green light. And he fell." Her eyes were wide as her breathing stuttered.

Despite his injured state, he took her face in his hands and looked right into her eyes. "Everything's OK," he said as he kissed her softly. He kissed her nose, her cheeks, her eyes, her lips. "We're OK."

"But how?" she held up the stick again. She felt calmer with his hands on her, looking into his eyes.

Draco lifted his hand to take the stick from her, to examine it, and when his skin touched it at the same time as hers, it began to glow.

"What's happening?" she asked, releasing the stick at the same time he did. It stayed, floating in front of them, a bright white light growing brighter. "Draco?"

Hermione clung to him and he clung to her as the light grew brighter and brighter. She couldn't move. His skin against hers was a reassuring anchor, but the light was so bright she could barely see. She looked to him - she could still see his face, his eyes - and he was staring back at her.

"I feel strange. Like I'm being pulled somewhere," he said, and she nodded. It felt like she was being pulled away from here, away from him. Desperately, she captured his lips, the light so bright she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer.

"I love you," she said against his mouth. She couldn't see anything except blinding white light.

"I love you, too." And then, she couldn't feel him anymore. Couldn't feel anything. She was floating in a sea of white light.

And then, there was nothing.

* * *

Hermione groaned as her eyes blinked open. Her body ached. She was lying in a bed, and not a comfortable one, with bright sunlight was pouring in the tall windows behind her. She blinked for a few moments until she could open her eyes comfortably. She was in the hospital wing at Hogwarts, curtains pulled shut around her. What had happened? She couldn't remember anything.

She groaned and suddenly Harry was there, leaning over her, hair askew. "Mione!" he said, enveloping her in a hug, making her wince. "You're awake. It's been days!"

"Days?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. "What happened?"

"Someone mailed you a cursed object, a former Death Eater. You opened it, and he - " he motioned toward the closed curtain, "tried to stop you from grabbing it. When the two of you touched it, you passed out. We've been waiting for you both to wake up ever since."

"A Death Eater?" She remembered. They were in their eighth year at Hogwarts. Voldemort had been defeated with the surprising help of the Malfoy family, and all the seventh years who'd survived had come back to finish up. She remembered her friends - both old and new - and how odd it had been after Malfoy had switched sides, how different he'd been since the school year started. She remembered -

A loud groan from the bed next to hers set her heart to racing. The sound sent shivers down into her belly and she shot up, wincing as her head throbbed.

"Mione, slow down." Harry tried to ease her back, but she brushed him off. She knew that groan. Knew that voice. Like a floodgate opening, memories of Draco rushed to the forefront of her brain. Draco buying books from her shop. Draco sharing Thai food with her. Draco holding her as they watched terrible movies. Draco making love to her, kissing her scars, her lips, her skin. She remembered Draco in the Great Hall trying to knock a simple silver pendant from her hands that received as a gift through owl post.

She stood, wobbling on her feet, and shoved the curtain aside.

With the sound of the curtain, steely gray eyes met hers and she felt her heartbeat heavily in her throat. Harry said she'd been asleep for days, but she remembered months. Did he?

She stared at him for a long moment, his face set into the mask she'd known since she was eleven - cold, indifferent. He didn't remember. It hadn't been real. She felt tears well up in her eyes as her shoulders slumped, and then she saw it - a slight widening of his eyes, a quickening of his breath as his lips just barely parted.

"Hermione," Harry said, and she shot him a look over her shoulder that made him stay put.

Slowly, hopefully, she sat on the edge of Draco's bed. They were both dressed in hospital pajamas - short-sleeved, gray, and soft. His Dark Mark stood in stark contrast on his forearm and with fingers that shook, she reached out and touched it. His eyes closed for a moment before he met her gaze again. He pushed himself up to sitting, the blanket pooling around his waist. He let his fingers touch her MUDBLOOD scars. His hands shook as he lifted her arm to his lips, and never breaking his gaze, kissed every scarred letter. He'd told her that if he could kiss those scars enough, he'd kiss them away.

"Draco?" she whispered as the tears in her eyes overflowed down her cheeks.

Suddenly his mask fell away. Relief painted his features as she fell against him. He gathered her close and she buried her face in his neck - clean linen and that spicy-sweet smell that was just him. His hand went into her hair and she felt hot tears fall from her cheeks onto his chest.

"It wasn't real," she choked out, holding onto him as if, at any moment, he might disappear. She felt his lips in her hair, on her forehead, the feeling familiar and comforting. His hands moved to her waist, to hold her tightly against him. "Someone cursed us with a necklace. It was all in our heads." She shook as reality set in. This was the real world, and in this world, they weren't together. They weren't even friends. "It wasn't real," she sobbed.

"It was." His voice was gruff. "For us, it was." He pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed the palm. "For me, it was real. It is real."

Something in his voice, so sure and definite, calmed her. It was just like when they'd curled on their couch and watched scary movies. Just like the moments before they'd been brought back here, and she'd held onto him as tightly as she could. He'd been her anchor when her fear would take over.

She leaned back and looked at him, unsurprised to see tears leaking from his grey eyes. She wiped them away with her thumb.

"I don't want to be without you," she whispered. He leaned forward and kissed the trails on her cheeks her own tears had left.

"Then don't be." Like a weight being lifted, things became clear. They'd been in these beds, unconscious, for days, but somehow, they'd also been tied together somewhere else. They'd been together for months, nearly a year. They'd fallen in love. They'd planned a life. Being back in the real world, back in a world with magic and Houses and pasts didn't have to change that unless they let it.

"Alright." She smiled then, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. She pressed her lips to his, feeling him exhale in relief. His body relaxed, and she realized he'd thought she would be the one to leave.

From behind her, Harry cleared his throat, and she pulled away slowly and stared into Draco's eyes. She saw his mask slipping back into place, and kissed him softly to reassure him before turning to her friend.

Harry stood just a few feet back, hands in his pockets, a look of pure awkwardness on his face. "Er, Madam Pomphrey said she thought the two of you might be sharing some sort of dream. Or well, more than a dream. Sort of an alternate reality. She wasn't sure how long - " He looked pointedly away from them. "She did some diagnostics, saw that your magics had intertwined." He cleared his throat. "I take it you were experiencing the dream, or whatever it was, together?" When he met Hermione's eyes, his cheeks were pink with embarrassment.

"Yes," Draco said, voice wary. Hermione instinctively leaned into him, grasping his tee-shirt in one hand while she wrapped the other around his waist. His hand on her waist gripped her as if she might be pulled away from him.

"Well. Do I want to know what happened?" he asked, and Hermione laughed, making him blush further. "I suppose if this - " he waved between them. "If the two of you are - " he stumbled, at a loss for words.

"Together," Draco drawled.

"Well. Yes. Together. I suppose if that's true…" he looked to Hermione for confirmation, his expression clearly saying that he hoped it wasn't true.

"I love him, Harry," she said firmly, and she felt Draco's fingers on her waist squeeze her gently. "We love each other. So, yes. It's true."

"Bloody hell," he said, pushing unruly hair back and looking between them with a sigh. "This is going to take some getting used to." With a grimace that Hermione was sure was supposed to be a smile, Harry stepped forward and offered Draco his hand. Draco leaned forward, still holding Hermione close, and clasped Harry's hand, shaking it once, before letting go. "All right then. I should go warn, er, _tell_ people. I suppose. Right." He started to walk away, only to look back and mumble once more, "Bloody hell."

The hospital wing's door swung shut, and Hermione turned to Draco. She released her death grip on him, only to cup his face with her hands. She searched his grey eyes for the boy who'd tormented her, who'd hated her, but she could only find her Draco. The Draco who brought her flowers and kissed her scars.

Draco looked over her shoulder toward her bed. He picked up his wand from the side table and said, "Accio daisy." A single daisy - Harry must have brought them, as he knew they were her favorite - flew into his hand from a small vase beside her bed. With a smirk he tucked it neatly behind her ear before tucking a stray curl around it and cupping her cheek.

"So cheesy," she whispered with a smile.

"Cheesy looks good on you, Granger."

Hermione laughed, then crashed her lips to his. He lost his hands in her hair as she scooted so that they were lying, side by side on his bed, wrapped around each other.

When their kiss slowed, Hermione leaned her forehead against his and wove their fingers together. "This isn't going to be easy," she said. "Not like it was in our flat. For everyone else, this will be something - something completely out of the blue."

"It doesn't have to be easy - " he kissed her nose. "To be worth it."

Hermione nodded and pressed her forehead against his. "I love you," she breathed, needing to hear him say it in this world, where their history was so much larger than a chance meeting at Fortuna Books. Needing him to hear it now, at Hogwarts, where the entirety of their painful history existed.

"I love you, too." He said, pulling her to his chest. "More than anything."

* * *

When Madame Pomphrey came to check on them later, she found them lying that way, fingers interlaced, talking quietly. She didn't say anything, but did a diagnostic spell. Their magics were still intertwined, which didn't surprise her, as she'd watched them grow together beautifully as the slept. She couldn't see what they'd experienced, but she'd watched, checking hourly, as their individual magics found one another and wove themselves together intricately.

"You're both free to go," she said as they stood, holding onto one another. "Your robes are just there, and your classmates will be having dinner right about now if you'd like to go to the Great Hall." She smiled. "I'm glad for you both, you know." She left them alone, then, a smile on her face.

They changed together, having no reason to be shy, and stopped when they were down to their underthings to hold one another, skin to skin, for just a moment. Hermione sighed. It felt the same. She'd worried for a moment that he would feel different, but she fit against him like always.

When they were both dressed, Hermione leaned over and straightened his Slytherin tie before standing on her toes and pressing a kiss to his lips. He took a deep breath and smiled, then offered her his hand.

"Ready to go, Granger?" he asked, and she was taken back to their first date. A smile spread across her face as she laced their fingers together.

She smiled, leaning into him, and nodded. "Let's go."


	2. Serendipity

**Chapter 1 was initially going to be a one-shot, but plans change. If you like fluffy fics, this chapter will be right up your alley!**

***Revised since posting initially! **

* * *

Draco stared into the floor length mirror in his dormitory, taking deep breaths. It had been odd since they'd come out of the spell from that other place, that alternate reality. His feelings for Hermione hadn't changed, and he knew hers for him hadn't changed, but things were so much more complicated now. At first, the Slytherins had avoided him as if he had something contagious, which was fine by him. He'd only been gone from them for a few days, but for him it had been months. Months without Slytherin pressures. Months to be happy, to be loved. Their absence wasn't anything he was losing sleep over.

The Gryffindors, who he'd thought would be more forgiving, had mostly turned on Hermione in the beginning. All except Potter and his girlfriend whose name Draco couldn't remember for the life of him.

From the moment they'd walked into the Great Hall, just hours after they left their private little world and rejoined this one, things had been more difficult. The memory of it had his stomach in knots as if it had just happened.

* * *

"_Still ready, Granger?" Draco asked Hermione just outside The Great Hall. His hand kept clamping and loosening around hers, a sure sign that he was nervous. He'd been find in the hospital wing, but they closer they got to the rest of the student body, the more his nerves acted up._

"_Draco," she said, standing in front of him. It was odd to see his fiancée - well, not fiancée, not in this world - in Hogwarts robes. They needed to talk about that - their future. But not right now. She pulled her hand from his and put both palms on his cheeks. Her eyes were sad. "If this is too much - "_

_He kissed her, softly, taking her cheeks in his hand and rubbing his thumbs over her cheek bones. "Don't even think about it," he said, smiling against her lips and kissing her once more. Touching her eased his nerves. "You're stuck with me, Granger. Have I not made that clear in all the time we've been together?"_

_He felt her smile back. She pulled away and retook his hand. Heart thudding in his chest, he pushed through the doors. The doors clicked shut behind him and silence rippled out from the seats closest to them all the way to the front of the room like throwing a stone in a pond. Draco glanced toward Gryffindor, and there was a notable absence of Potter and Weasley. His best bet was that Potter was trying to calm Weasley down._

_Hermione's squeezed his fingers as she led them - much to his relief - to the Ravenclaw table where Luna Lovegood sat, reading an upside down book._

"_Hello," Luna said into the quiet room, unaware hers was the only voice. She looked up at them through thick, juice-bottle glasses and her eyebrows rose. "Oh!" She smiled. "You're soulmates, how wonderful," she said airily, then nodded. "That makes sense." With a smile, she went back to her book._

_Conversation erupted everywhere. Draco felt his cheeks heat - not because of Hermione, not because the thought of them being soulmates shocked him, because it didn't, but because all eyes were on him, judging him, judging __**them.**_

_Hermione, seemingly unflustered, sat in front of Luna, pulling him with her. They'd just filled their plates - Draco getting extra dessert, because Hermione always said she didn't want any, even if she really did - when Ronald Weasley burst into the Great Hall, followed by a flustered Potter, and came stomping up to the table where they sat, face redder than his hair. _

_Granger's fingers found his under the table and held his hand tight._

"_What the bloody hell, 'Mione?" he bellowed, causing students who'd been shooting them glances anyway to stop and outright stare. "This git curses you, puts you in the hospital wing, and now you're __bloody dating __him?" His hands were balled into fists and his chest heaved. "Does he have you imperiused? This - " he motioned between them, "is bloody ridiculous!"_

_Draco glanced at Hermione. He saw her set her jaw, saw her eyes narrow, and for a moment he felt sorry for Weasley. He knew that look, having been on the receiving end of it once or twice over the last year, and if Weasley were smart, he'd run._

"_Excuse me," she said, her voice low. "But I do believe you're mistaken, Ronald." She stayed seated, staring up at him with anger burning in her eyes._

"_So you're not together, then?" Ron asked, his expression falling, transitioning from furious to confused in a breath._

"_We __**are **__together," she said, squeezing Draco's hand again. "You're mistaken about the rest." Her teeth were clenched as she spoke._

"_So what, you get cursed, spend a few days lying in hospital, and now you __**like**__ this arrogant ferret?" His voice was angry again and his cheeks were crimson._

_Next to Draco, Hermione tensed. She looked at him, an apology in her eyes, and his stomach dropped. Things weren't going back to the way they were. This was all too much. He nodded to her, feeling his heart break as he gave her permission to back out of this. They were only a few hours into this new life and already it was falling apart. She let go of his hand and stood and it was like someone had ripped away part of him. The Great Hall was quiet again as everyone watched._

"_I don't just like him," she said, her voice steady as she leaned her hands on the table and looked at Ron across from them. Someone whispered loudly, and Hermione looked around the Hall, where dozens of people stared at her, and she gritted her teeth. "All right," she said with a deep breath, her voice steady. "Everyone listen up! I'm only going to say this once, though I don't owe **anyone** an explanation for **anything.**" Her tone was biting. "Draco and I love each other. I could stand here and tell you all how it happened, tell you all the reasons why I love him, but I won't, because frankly, it's none of your damn business. You can like it, or not. I don't care, but please - " she focused her attention back on Ron, "if you can't accept it, then leave us __**alone.**__"_

_Hermione retook her seat, and as if nothing had happened, she took a bite of her dinner. Draco, as shocked as everyone else in the room, looked down at his plate, taking a bite as well, his heart racing. Ron stared at the two of them, face crimson, before he stomped off, grumbling under his breath. Potter passed by, shooting them an apologetic glance, before sitting beside Ron and saying something that made Ron tense before his head dropped into his hands on the table._

_After a few moments, people went back to talking. People whispered, and pointed, but they were left alone. Just as Hermione had asked._

"_You thought I was going to leave you," Hermione said after a moment. He turned toward her, and she was smirking at him. He shrugged, ashamed that he'd doubted her._

"_Things are different here," he said, shrugging again. Smirk never leaving her lips, she leaned forward and kissed him._

"_Only if we let them be," she whispered. The murmurs around them grew louder, but he didn't care. He kissed her again, closing his eyes and imaging them in Fortuna Books, or in their flat, or anywhere but here for just a moment._

"_Want to share my treacle tart?" he asked when he finally pulled away. She laughed, her warm brown eyes sparkling, and nodded as he put the overloaded plate between them. She smiled when she saw the extra serving and pressed her shoulder into his._

"_See?" She took an overly large bite. "Nothing has to change unless we let it."_

* * *

That had been weeks ago, and while she'd been right - their relationship hadn't changed - things were still different.

They didn't live together anymore. He was back in the dungeons and she was back in the tower, and he hated it. He hated going to sleep without her. Hated having to wait to see her, instead of being able to go to her whenever he damn well pleased.

But not all the changes were bad. They had most classes together, and studied together in the library. Like in the bookstore, she often took him to find a book and wound up kissing him senseless against a shelf. In their downtime, they sat in the courtyard and talked, strolled by the Black Lake, or found hidden corners to kiss. And while things with the other students had been rough at first, they'd gotten better in the coming weeks. The Slytherins hadn't accepted Hermione, but they'd stopped actively shunning her. Blaise, Theo, and Daphne had even been almost conversational once. And the Gryffindors, sans Weasley, had seemed to accept him more readily, though they still avoided his eyes when they looked at him.

Still, even with all the changes that weren't so bad, he missed so much. He missed holding her in bed. Kissing her face, her body, making love to her. Planning a life with her. Since they'd come back, they hadn't talk about that. About their future outside of these walls.

They'd talked about the attack on Hermione with MgGonnagal. Auror's had found the man who sent the cursed object - a low rank Death Eater who had a particularly strong hatred for muggleborns. He hadn't been a major player during the war, and hadn't been arrested, and the theory was that he wanted to gain some sort of notoriety for taking out the wizarding world's favorite muggleborn. Draco had recognized the object when she'd unwrapped it - a pendant from Borgin and Burkes. If he hadn't touched it as he tried to knock it from her hands, she would have been trapped in that alternate version of reality alone and she may never have gotten out. The man who'd broken into their flat was a shadow version of the man who'd cursed them. He'd been trying to kill Draco - which would have killed him in both worlds - to keep Hermione trapped, suffering and alone, until her body passed away. But they'd been together, and he'd failed, and the rest was history.

Now, totally back in the real world, that threat didn't seem as scary as what Draco was planning next. He looked at himself in the mirror one last time and brushed his fingers through his hair. It was a Hogsmeade weekend, and he was to pick up Hermione from the Gryffindor portrait for their first actual date in the real world.

He'd done some shopping via owl over the last few weeks, and looked at his purchases in the mirror, feeling more like himself than he had since they got back. Muggle jeans, a fitted tee shirt with horizontal stripes, tennis shoes - if his father were to see him, he would disown him, and Draco was surprised to realize he didn't care. He'd missed these clothes, missed what it felt like to be the Draco who had a small flat with the woman he loved.

He patted the pocket of his jeans, his heart stuttering when he felt the small lump there. He checked his watch - another purchase - and left the dungeon, waving a quick greeting to Blaise as he darted out.

Gryffindor tower was a bit of a walk, so he half-ran there. He was just about to knock on the portrait when it opened and Hermione threw herself into his arms. He laughed as he caught her around the waist.

"That was risky," he said, leaning back to tuck a curl behind her ear, stroking her cheek with his thumb. "I could have been anyone!"

"Not really," she said, kissing his chin. "The Fat Lady told me it was you." She grinned, her cheeks pink.

He took a step back to take in her appearance. Her hair was up in a bun, held together with a stick the way she'd worn it with her wand, back when neither of them knew what a wand was. She wore jeans, too, and a green tee shirt that hugged her curves. He smiled. This was something she would have worn to work at Fortuna, and seeing her like this warmed his heart.

Draco pulled his wand and a coin from his pocket and transfigured it into a daisy, then slipped it behind her ear. He was rewarded with a darker blush that showcased the freckles on her nose.

"So, so cheesy," she said and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips.

"Hermione, are we - " Potter stopped in the portrait hole when he saw them, pressed together. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the floor, then the ceiling. "Oh, Malfoy. Hey. I was just wondering if we were leaving for Hogsmeade yet."

Draco looked at Hermione, confused, the small lump in his pocket burning against his thigh.

"Harry and Ginny wanted to join us in Hogsmeade," she said, a pained smile on her face. "They want to get to know you."

Draco took a look at Hermione's face - her hopeful eyes and her tense expression - then looked at Potter, who'd been joined by Ginny. "Where to first?" he asked. Hermione sank into his side and kissed the fabric over his shoulder. Potter grimaced. Ginny smirked.

"The Three Broomsticks," Ginny said, leading Potter out by the hand. "You're buying," she said, patting Draco's shoulder rather roughly as she passed.

Draco couldn't help but laugh. "I think we're going to get along, Red," he said, still unable to remember her name, and she looked back at him over her shoulder with a grin.

"Stranger things have happened," she quipped before pulling Potter's arm over her shoulder and leading the way.

Hermione snickered and laced her fingers with Draco's as they followed. "Thank you," she said quietly, looking up at him through her dark eyelashes.

"I love you." He shrugged and she kissed his shoulder again and she laughed.

* * *

As promised, Draco bought their drinks at The Three Broomsticks. Draco ordered a dragon ale - a drink he'd always wanted to try - while they others got butterbeers. The ale was good. A little sweet on the tail end of each sip.

The conversation was awkward at first. They talked about the weather, for goodness sake. But it was saved by Red, who Draco was beginning to really like.

"So, Malfoy," she said, sipping her butterbeer, "can I ask you a question?"

Draco was leaning back in the booth, his arm around Hermione's shoulders, her soft body pressed into his side. He narrowed his eyes at her - an old habit - and took a sip of his dragon ale. "Go for it, Red," he said, letting his signature smirk play on his lips.

She met it with one of her own and leaned forward while Harry watched her worriedly. "In that other dream place the two were trapped in, you two had a life together. Right?" She lifted an eyebrow. Potter's eyes went wide.

"Yes." Another sip of dragon ale, bitter with a bit of sweet at the end.

"Well then, tell me," she leaned back into Potter's shoulder. "How did you two _meet?_" She grinned at her cheek and took a sip.

Draco relaxed. He'd been worried she might ask something from _before_. He peered down at Hermione, who looked up at him and shrugged with a small smile, giving him permission. They hadn't really talked about that time with anyone, except McGonnagal and Pomphrey. Then again, no one had really asked. "Well," he said, finishing his ale and placing the bottle on the table. "For starters, we were muggles." Ginny's eyebrows shot up into her hairline, and he smiled. "Granger owned a bookshop called Fortuna Books. I don't really know how long we'd been there, it's all sort of fuzzy and out focus. Until we met. I needed a new book - "

"Wasn't it a cookbook?" Hermione asked with a laugh.

"Hmm. I think so," he said before he kissed her forehead and turned back to Ginny. "So, I walk into Fortuna, and this tiny little brunette with the biggest hair I'd ever seen is behind the counter. And she turns from where she'd been restocking bags or something, and as soon as I see her smile, I forget what I'm there for. All I could think about was how pretty she was. And how big her hair was."

Hermione laughed and poked his chest. "It was really very cute," she said, sitting up a little and repositioning herself against his side. "He stumbled over his words, his cheeks got all red, and after just a few minutes of incoherent rambling, during which I caught the words _Draco_, and _cookbook_, and something about pie, he left."

"It wasn't _that_ bad," Draco said, lifting an eyebrow at her, and she laughed.

"Oh, it was. Maybe worse." He huffed, and she patted his arm. "It was adorable," she assured him.

"Anyway," he said, shaking his head and looking back at Red, who was watching them with a small smile, "I started making up reasons to go back. The second time I went in, I bought a book after letting her recommend one _and _I learned her name. I was pretty proud of that," he said with a nod.

"But it took _weeks_ for him to properly ask me out," Hermione said. "On the plus side, he bought over 20 books during that time. It was _very_ lucrative for Fortuna."

Draco laughed and shook his head. "I even read a few of them," he deadpanned, and Hermione poked his chest.

"That sounds really nice," Ginny said with a broad grin, then looked to Potter. "Doesn't it Harry?"

To his credit, Potter nodded with a look that suggested he meant, and Draco found his estimation of the man go up. "And not at all surprising that in an alternate reality in Hermione's brain where literally _anything_ is possible, she would own a bookstore," he deadpanned.

Draco laughed aloud. Hermione swatted his chest. And the conversation flowed much more freely after that. Draco tipped his empty bottle to Red in thanks, and she shrugged back. Hanging out with Gryffindors was turning out to not be so bad.

After another round of drinks, with some chips to keep them sober, the four Hogwarts students walked around Hogsmeade, stopping for sweets in Honeydukes and new quills at Scrivenshafts. The longer they walked, the more comfortable Draco became with Hermione's friends, and the more anxious he became about the small item in his pocket. He tried not to fidget with it, but he couldn't help checking for it every so often.

While Hermione and Harry went into Zonko's to look for something to send George, who was just getting his joke shop up and running again, Ginny rounded on Draco with a cat-like grin.

"So," she said, arms crossed, smirking again. "What's that you keep fidgeting with in your pocket?"

His face flamed as he set his jaw, trying for nonchalance and failing miserably. "I'm not sure what you mean," he said, crossing his arms as well, a nervous weight in his gut.

"Is it a ring?" She asked, her lips quirking up. "Are you going to ask Hermione to marry you?"

Draco felt his shoulders fall, unable to lie - an unfortunate side effect to so much time with Hermione and her friends. He looked into the shop's windows, seeing Hermione and Potter near the back. With a resigned sigh he pulled the small ring from his pocket and showed her.

The band was rose gold and thin with a round moonstone in a classic setting. It wasn't what he'd ever envisioned giving his future wife, but that was before Hermione. He would give her whatever she wanted, always.

"It's very Hermione," Red said with a smile. He slipped the ring back into his pocket and shrugged.

"In that other life we had, we talked about getting married," he said. "She'd found this ring, and I'd bought it, but I hadn't given it to her yet." He sighed. Red - he remembered her name now, but he preferred calling her Red - was watching him with earnest eyes. "I don't know how to ask her," he said with a grimace. "I thought I might do it today, but I don't know if, in this world, with our pasts and the way things are, she'll say yes."

Red laughed and patted his arm then gave it a squeeze, a genuine smile on her face. "I've known Hermione since I was ten. And in all that time, I've never - _ever_ \- seen her like she is with you." She turned and faced the store beside him and watched as Harry and Hermione paid for the purchase. "You should ask her in a way you would have asked her in that other place." She bumped her shoulder against his. "And make sure she knows, after she says yes - because she most definitely will - that I get to be her maid of honor."

Draco laughed as Harry and Hermione walked outside, meeting them.

"What's so funny?" Hermione asked, slipping an arm around Draco's waist as she looked between her boyfriend and best girl friend with her eyes squinted.

"Red and I were just getting to know each other a little better." He looked at Potter and smirked. "She's something else," he said, and Potter actually grinned.

He pushed his crooked glasses higher on his nose and lifted his eyebrows. "You have _no_ idea."

Ginny elbowed him and he laughed. It was weird seeing Potter behaving as if he were normal, and not _the chosen one_. Weird, but not terrible.

"I don't want to be rude," Ginny said, slipping her arm through Potter's, "but I was sort of hoping for some _alone _time today, Harry." Ginny looked up at Harry, and he blushed. "You don't mind, do you Hermione?"

"Of course not," Hermione said with a laugh.

"It's been fun, Potter," Draco said, offering his hand without really thinking about it. Potter took it without even missing a beat and nodded. Not terrible at all.

"See you," he said as they walked way, jumping when Ginny pinched his butt. She looked over her shoulder and winked at Draco just before they rounded a corner.

"Oh, Draco. Thank you," Hermione said, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You were so wonderful with them."

"As much as it pains me to say this, they're not so bad." Draco leaned down and kissed her. "And I love you," he said in explanation against her lips.

She smiled back, her lips curling into his in a wonderfully familiar way. "Good."

"So," he said, leaning back, "where to now?"

Hermione leaned back and looked at him with a coy smile. "Well, there's a new shop that I thought we could check out." She was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. "A _book_ shop!"

Draco laughed and kissed her nose. "Lead the way, Granger."

* * *

Hermione practically dragged him to the other end of Hogsmeade toward Serendipity, the new book shop. On the way, they passed Ron with his new girlfriend - a seventh year Hufflepuff named Aimee - and as soon as he saw them, he pulled Aimee into a kiss that made both Hermione and Draco cringe. He was practically eating her face. Even though Ron and Hermione hadn't every really dated - a few kisses at the end of the war that fizzled out when they realized they were better as friends - he was really taking her new relationship with Draco poorly.

They passed the kissing couple quickly, ignoring the searing look Ron was giving Hermione as he kissed the younger girl. Draco rubbed her fingers, knowing it must be hard for Hermione for her friend to be behaving this way, but she just gave him a small smile and pulled him into the shop.

Serendipity didn't look anything like Fortuna Books had. Where Fortuna was small and light, Serendipity was floor-to-ceiling books and dark, but it wasn't an unpleasant difference. Though it looked nothing like Fortuna, walking in felt like coming home.

Hermione beamed up at him, Ron and Aimee forgotten. "Let's browse," she said, one corner of her mouth lifting as if she'd said something scandalous. He put his hand on her waist and pulled her close, letting her lead the way..

They made their way through the shelves all the way back to a section that Draco had never seen in a wizard book shop - _Muggle Fiction._

They slowed here, and Draco's finger trailed along the titles. Hermione was pulling books from the shelves, making a stack on the floor. He recognized most of them - books he'd bought from her in that other existence - and smiled.

When his finger found a familiar spine - _Dune _by Frank Herbert - he stopped and pulled it from the shelf. Hermione laughed.

"You never did read it, you know," she said, grinning before turning back to the shelf. "And we had all those plans to discuss it over dinner. A shame, really."

Draco laughed. He watched as she shifted books from one arm to the other before remembering her stack on the floor. How many times had he watched her stack books just like that at Fortuna, even though she owned the store? Now, she had magic, and still she shuffled them around and stacked them by her feet.

Their lives together in that other place hadn't been real. They'd lived, they'd loved, but it had been in their heads. But this - the here and now - this was real.

While her back was turned, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring, holding it between his thumb and forefinger. "Granger," he said, his voice husky.

"Hmm?" she asked, not turning around.

"Granger," he said again, a grin on his face as he watched her, obliviously wrapped up in the books before her.

"Yes?" she asked, her fingertip trailing spines.

"Hermione!" he said, a laugh in his voice.

She turned, an almost annoyed look on her face, until she saw the ring he held out. The books in her hand fell toward the ground and he caught them with his wand, letting them land softly, as her eyes popped wide.

"Draco. What are - "

"I had a plan," he said, holding the ring out. "On Christmas morning, we we were going to open presents, and then, at the very end, after I gave you a giant box of your favorite chocolates - it was huge, really - I was going to give you this. I was going to tell you how much I loved you, how our life together in our flat was perfect. How I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you."

Her hands went over her mouth as her eyes filled with tears.

"But then we came back here. Back to the real world, where you were in Gryffindor and I was in Slytherin. Only, everything was different." He wet his lips with the tip of his tongue. "Here, we don't have a flat or an established life together." With a deep breath, he lowered to one knee, and a sob escaped her covered lips. "We woke up," he said, voice low, "and all I knew for sure was that _I loved you. _We don't have a flat, or a bookshop, but when I look into my future, all I can see is you. Our future together." He swallowed and wet his lips. "I'm sorry I waited too long there to ask you properly, and I know here, things are really different, but I want to ask you now." He looked into her eyes - the same eyes he'd gazed into for months, that he wanted to gaze into for the rest of his life - and smiled. "Hermione Granger, I love you. More than anything. And I need to know, in this world, the real world, will you be my wife?"

Hermione's hands fell from her mouth, revealing her ear-to-ear smile, even as tears laid tracks down her face. She fell to her knees in front of him and took his hands in hers, kissing his knuckles.

"Of course I will," she whispered, smiling through her tears, her voice choked with emotion. "But only because that means I'll get to call you my husband." Draco laughed and slipped the ring onto her finger, then stood, pulling her with him, lifting her off the ground and kissing her with all he had.

When he sat her down, she was laughing. She looked at the ring and laughed again. "It's the ring we saw in that little shop," she said, then kissed him again. "The one I loved so much."

"I want to give you everything, Granger," he said, and she leaned into him, books forgotten.

"You're so cheesy," she said with a teary laugh.

"Cheesy may be a good look for both of us," he said, rubbing his thumb over the small ring on her slender finger.

"We're getting married," she whispered, looking up at him with joy etched into her features.

"We're getting married," he said with a laugh.

Her arms went around his neck and she kissed him again, smiling into his lips, hugging him so tightly he could barely breathe. They stayed that way for a long moment. When they finally pulled apart, Hermione flicked her wand and all the books she'd pulled down re-shelved themselves. "That would have been handy at Fortuna," she said with a smirk, before they left the store.

Hand in hand, they walked back toward Hogwarts as the sun set. Most of the other students had already made their way back, but a few passed them, giving them sidelong glances as they walked. Hermione twirled the ring on her finger as Draco held her other hand, a smile on his face.

"We have to go tell Harry and Ginny," she said with a smile, nearly skipping.

Draco laughed and ran his free hand through his hair. "Of course," he said, then squeezed her hand. "Red has to be your maid of honor, by the way."

"She knew?" Hermione turned surprised eyes toward him.

Draco shrugged and brought their joined hands to his mouth to kiss her knuckles. "She figured it out while we were all talking today. Gave me some advice while you and Potter were shopping." He kissed her hand again. "I think I like that one. Potter, too, though I'd appreciate you never repeating that bit."

Hermione sighed, letting go of his hand to slip against his side, her arm around his waist. The daisy he'd given her earlier was still behind her ear and he reached up to tuck it more securely into her hair. In this moment, in the cool March air, everything felt just right.

"Do you think McGonnagal will give us our own private rooms now that we're engaged?" Draco asked, breaking the sweet silence and wiggling his eyebrows.

Hermione laughed, swatted his chest, and kissed his shoulder. "I don't know about that. But tonight, I think between Harry, Ginny, and me, we can _probably_ sneak you into Gryffindor tower, if you're willing to spend a night in the lion's den." She wiggled her eyebrows right back.

He kissed her hair, wishing they were already there, wrapped up in her blankets in the dark. "For you, I'd go anywhere. _Even_ Gryffindor tower."

"So cheesy," she said, leaning up to kiss his jaw. He smirked and pulled her against him as they walked into Hogwarts, the sun setting, the large doors swinging shut behind them.


	3. Third Time's the Charm

**A third installment! This feels like the last actual chapter, but there are other little snippets in this world that have been floating around in my head. So, if you enjoy this world, you may see a few little mini-chapters from their future together at some point!**

**Warning: This chapter is rated M for adult content. If you're not 18, peace out!**

**Disclaimer: JK Rowling is a queen. I am but a loyal subject.**

***This chapter has been revised since posting!**

* * *

Hermione stared into the vanity mirror as she applied her coral lipstick carefully, so as not to smudge it. Her hands shook, and she felt tears that were both happy and afraid well in her eyes as she stared at herself, grateful for Ginny's charm that would make sure her makeup didn't run. Her hair was half down, the top half pulled up and braided back, and she touched the braids absently, wondering why she'd never thought of braids to contain the chaos that was her hair before.

"You look beautiful," Harry said from his spot behind her. Hermione smiled at him in the mirror, tears receding, and took a deep breath.

"I'm scared," Hermione admitted with a little laugh, then covered her red cheeks with her hands. "I feel like I'm not supposed to be scared."

Harry laughed and put a hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Being scared just means it's real." He gave her shoulders a squeeze.

"Do you think Draco's scared?" Hermione asked, eyebrows raised, an almost-grimace on her face.

Harry smirked at her in the mirror and squeezed her shoulder. "Terrified."

At that, Hermione grinned.

* * *

"You OK?" Ginny asked as Draco stared out the window, hands in his pockets.

"What?" Draco asked, turning toward her with wide eyes. "Oh. Yes. Fine, Red." He smiled, then turned to once again gaze out the window at the people milling around outside, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

"Malfoy," Ginny said as she leaned against the back of the couch. "It's alright to be nervous."

"I'm not nervous," he said, spinning to face the woman who'd become one of his very good friends over the last year, his grey eyes wide.

Ginny laughed. "Sure. OK," she said, crossing his arms. "I saw Hermione a little while ago."

Draco swallowed and took an involuntary step forward. "How did she seem?"

With a smile, Ginny stepped away from the couch and straightened his Muggle tie before patting his chest. "She seemed nervous, and happy, and she looked absolutely beautiful."

Draco took a deep breath and nodded. He wanted to say that _of course _she looked beautiful, that she always looked beautiful, but before he could reply, there was a quick knock on the door. Blaise Zabini popped his head in and grinned. "Looking good, Red," he said with a wink, and Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Is it time?" Draco asked one of his oldest friends, eyes wide.

Blaise nodded and grinned even more broadly. "Let's go get you married off so I become the most eligible man out there." He winked at Ginny again, and they followed him out.

* * *

Hermione between the gauzy curtains that lined the sides and back of the garden, a knot of nerves writhing in her stomach. Near the front, on her side, sat the Weasleys - _all_ of them. They'd all come, even Ron. Over the last year, they hadn't been the most supportive of her relationship with Draco, but they were all here. Her eyes darted over to the other side, toward the front, and she covered her mouth with her hand as a smile stretched across her face. Narcissa was here. She truly hadn't been sure if Draco's mother was going to show up or not.

If the Weasley's had been unhappy about her love for Draco, it was nothing compared to Narcissa's reaction to the news that her pureblood son was going to marry a muggleborn.

* * *

"_I'm so nervous," Hermione said as she and Draco walked to the Great Hall, hand in hand. They'd been engaged only an hour, but it would be hard to keep it secret if she wore the ring, so they'd decided to tell anyone who asked. "How are people going to react?" she asked, eyeing the moonstone ring on her left ring finger with a huge grin._

"_Hopefully better than they reacted our first day back," Draco said with a smirk, and Hermione elbowed him._

"_It's gotten better since then," Hermione said with a scowl. She was right, it had. A few of his friends had even come around a little._

_Draco stopped outside the doors to the Great Hall and pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her waist and leaning back to see her face._

"_Regardless of how __they __react, this is a happy day," he said, smirking as he looked down at her. "The happiest day."_

_She grinned back and nodded, standing her toes to kiss him once. "The happiest day," she agreed._

"_Oi! Get a room!" Ginny said as she bounded over, a grin stretched across her face. She tugged Hermione away from Draco and hugged her, then pulled her hand toward her face and squealed when she saw the ring._

_Harry walked up sheepishly, a small grin on his face as an apology for his girlfriend's actions. He offered Draco his hand, and with a smile, Draco shook it. It was getting easier and easier to shake Potter's hand._

"_Congratulations, I suppose," Harry said with a shrug. "I would say it's a bit fast, but for you it's been, what?"_

"_Nearly a year," Draco said._

"_Nearly a year," Harry echoed. A genuine smile broke out over his face as he clapped Draco on the shoulder. "I suppose, since you've been dating my best friend for a year, and now you're to marry her, we'll have to become friends as well," Harry said, his expression open and kind._

"_I suppose so," Draco said with a smirk, trying to hide the strange emotions that welled up from that statement. _

_Other students walked around them, slowing and whispering before hurrying past. Hermione had been watching the boys talk, a smile stretched all the way across her face, but it slowly melted away as the other students and their invasive glances filtered by._

_Draco took her hand and brushed his thumb over her knuckles. "The happiest day, remember? No matter what."_

_She nodded up to him, her smile sad._

_"I mean, on what other day, in the history of Hogwarts, or maybe even the world, would Potter and I decide to become friends?" He gave her an exaggerated incredulous look._

_Hermione brightened as she laughed. "You're happy for me?" she asked Harry, her face scrunched up as she prepared for either answer._

"_I'm happy for you," he said, his smile genuine and large. She let go of Draco's hand to hug her best friend. When she pulled back, she slipped her arm back around Draco's waist and sighed. "The happiest day."_

_They were all quiet for a moment as this new version of reality settled it. Ginny broke the silence. "Well, can't put it off forever. Let's do this," she said, turning toward the doors of the Great Hall. "We'll all sit at the Gryffindor table. OK? We've got your back, Draco," she said with a wink._

_Draco smiled and nodded, that strange emotion he'd felt with Potter welling up again. He slipped his fingers between Hermione's and together, they walked in._

_It was quiet at first, reminding them of that first day where everyone stared and whispered, but then something strange happened. A few of the younger kids at the nearest table - Ravenclaw - started to clap. It was like something out of a movie. They started to clap, and it rippled outward, starting slowly and gaining speed until most of the Hall was clapping, whistling, and smiling at them. Hermione relaxed against Draco as they walked to the Gryffindor table, where her friends were giving them wolf whistles and pats on the back as they passed. At Hogwarts, news spreads quickly._

_"He can't sit here," Ron said as they approached, a sneer on his face. Ginny rolled her eyes and shoved her brother over, making room for Harry as Hermione and Draco sat on the opposite side of the table, avoiding Ron's gaze. Aimee was nowhere to be seen._

"_Shut up, Ron," Ginny said, turned her back on him and focusing on her friends across from her. "OK, so, I'm your maid-of-honor, right?" Ginny smirked at Draco before looking at Hermione._

"_So I've been told," Hermione said, lifting an eyebrow._

_Ginny opened her mouth with a grin to response, but before she could, the Great Hall went silent again a the doors opened with a bang. All eyes turned toward the doors. Hermione tensed and leaned into Draco._

_Coming toward them - one with a look of worry, the other with a look of fury - were Headmaster McGonagall and Narcissa Malfoy, respectively. They stopped in front of the young couple, all eyes on them, the Hall quiet again._

"_Draco, come," Narcissa said. Beside Draco, Hermione bristled. His fingers found hers and squeezed. _

"_Mother, may I ask what you're doing here?" Draco asked, meeting his mother's steady gaze with his own, years of training to be polite, but also to never back down, ingrained in his brain and rising to the surface. She hadn't come to see him when he'd been cursed. It was ridiculous that she was here now._

"_We're leaving," Narcissa said, avoiding Hermione's gaze. She sniffed and looked down her nose at her son. "We're going home for a while, Draco. Come along."_

"_No," he said as Hermione's fingers tightened in his as if to hold him in place._

"_Draco," Narcissa said, her voice tense, "this is not the time or the place for this conversation. Come along. Now."_

_Draco stood, never letting go of Hermione's hand. McGonagall stood off to the side, her jaw clenched._

"_I'm staying here, Mother," he said. He looked down at Hermione, saw the combination of rage and fear in her eyes, and he pulled her up next to him, lacing his fingers with hers more securely._

_He briefly thought back to the man in that other place who'd attacked them - a shadow of the Death Eater who'd cursed them. If that scumbag hadn't gotten the drop on him, he would have done anything - __**anything **__\- to keep Hermione safe, to make her happy. Just because they were in the real world didn't mean that fact had changed. Her happiness was paramount._

"_Draco, you're making a scene," Narcissa hissed, eyes flashing. Beside him, Hermione's shoulders straightened, her arm pressing into his, giving him strength._

"_No, Mother. You are," he said softly. "I'm assuming you're here because you heard of my engagement." He rubbed Hermione's forefinger with his thumb._

"_Yes," she hissed her jaw clenched. "I don't know what you're playing at, but you need to come home. I've already contacted Durmstrang, and they've agreed to let you finish up your education there." She looked at Hermione, her eyes fierce. "Whatever this **girl** has done to you, we'll fix it."_

_Before Hermione, Draco would have either flown off the handle at this point or would have buckled and conceded - both a coward's way out. But her hand in his, their life together, had changed him. He took a deep breath, and his voice was surprisingly calm and reasonable when he responded._

"_I'm eighteen, Mother. I came of age a year ago. You can't make me go anywhere, can't dictate who I choose to be with. I choose to stay here, with my fianceé, who's done nothing except offer me forgiveness and love. Something you always said you wanted for me." He squeezed Hermione's hand and lifted his chin. "I've missed you, Mother. I was in that other place for nearly a year, and I missed you," he said, the slightest bit of sadness in his voice, "and I hope that, in time, you can grow to be happy for us. Because this - my relationship with Hermione - isn't changing. We are getting married, Mother."_

_Narcissa stared at him for a long moment, uncharacteristically silent, her lips parted. Then, she snapped her mouth shut, looked at Hermione one last time with an unreadable expression, and stormed out of the Great Hall, leaving an uncomfortable silence in her wake._

_McGonagall sighed into the quiet, all student eyes on her, and put her hands on Draco's and Hermione's shoulders after the Great Hall doors shut behind Narcissa. "Mister Malfoy, Miss Granger," she said, her normally stern expression softening, "Congratulations." She smiled and gave their shoulders a squeeze. "__**This **__is what we fought for." McGonagall walked away, following Narcissa's path out of the Great Hall._

_As the doors closed yet again, the Great Hall erupted in sound. As they retook their seats, Draco looked to Hermione, an apology written across his face._

"_Don't," she said before he could speak. "It's not your fault."_

"_She's my mother," he said, his shoulders slumping. "Which means it's somewhat my fault."_

_"It's not," Hermione said firmly before she pressed a kiss to his shoulder, then leaned her cheek against it._

"_He stood up for you," Ron said to Hermione from beside Ginny, his expression pained. "To his mother. In front of everyone." Ron sighed as his shoulders fell forward. He looked to Malfoy, nodded once, and went back to his meal._

"_Well," Ginny said, eyes wide as she looked between her brother and the couple in front of her, "I suppose we have a wedding to start planning."_

* * *

Things had gotten better with Narcissa since then. It had taken some time, but she'd slowly warmed to them, having Hermione over for tea - it had been extremely awkward - and attempting to help her by teaching her how to host like a pureblood. But seeing her here, at their wedding, was nothing short of a miracle. Hermione was tempted to go out there and hug her, to tell her thank you, but the string quartet near the front started up and the guests quickly found their seats. Hermione stepped back and smoothed her dress of nonexistent wrinkles while taking a deep breath. Beside her, Harry grinned, rocking back on his heels.

"This is it, last chance to back out," he said with a playful grin. She swatted his arm and grinned. Harry peeked out and his smile grew. "He's out there," Harry said, just as the music changed. "His best man looks _really_ good," Harry said, and Hermione swatted him again, making him laugh. Over the last year, Draco and Ginny had become extremely close, and when he'd ask if it would be OK for him to steal her as his best man, Hermione had been thrilled, as had Ginny.

"My maid-of-honor looks nice, too," she said, winking at him.

"_Man-_of-honor, 'Mione. Man," he deadpanned, and she laughed. He grinned and offered her his arm. "Ready?"

She took a deep breath, the nerve endings all over her body tingling. "Ready," she said, taking his arm. With Harry, she stepped out into the aisle, the assembled guests stood, and she walked toward her future, standing at the front of the room in the Muggle, three-piece suit she'd loved, her heart in her throat.

* * *

Draco stared, lips parted, his breath caught in his throat. Hermione walked toward him, her cheeks pleasantly pink and a grin on her beautiful face. She held Harry's arm, but her eyes were on him. Draco assumed the gathered guests were watching her, but he didn't notice them. All he could see was her. Her dress was simple - fitted around her torso, thin straps holding it up, flowing to her ankles, embroidered with daisies in white thread. Her bouquet was made up of daisies with a few yellow roses tucked in. Her hair had been braided back but still curly and wild. From head to toe, she was perfect. And she was _his._

When she finally reached him he remembered to breathe. Harry gave Hermione a kiss on the cheek and she smiled as she let go of his arm and took Draco's hand. Harry took his place as man-of-honor and winked at Ginny, who winked right back, standing up straighter in her pale green, knee length dress.

As the officiant - a nice, older gentleman from the Ministry - began the ceremony, Draco stared down at his almost-wife. The nerves he'd felt before were suddenly gone in the brightness of her smile, the feel of her hands in his. When the officiant asked if anyone had an objection to their marriage, he felt a spike of fear - Weasley, his mother, there were so many people here who might object. His eyes left Hermione's for a moment and met his mother's. She gave him a tight smile and a nod, and his grin broadened as he looked back to Hermione and the absolute last bit of fear vanished.

"In the Muggle tradition," the officiant said, after no one objected, "Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger have asked to recite their own vows." He smiled at the couple. "Mr. Malfoy, whenever you're ready."

Draco took a deep breath and squeezed Hermione's hands.

"We wasted years," he began, his voice quiet, but magically magnified so that all the guests could hear. "Years of bickering, time that could have been spent becoming friends, getting to know another. Instead, we spent it with so much animosity. Then, we almost lost our chance when - when things got bad." He faltered and she squeezed his hands, a reassuring smile on her face. "But we didn't. We got a second chance in our eighth year at Hogwarts. And then, the most amazing, most wonderful thing happened. You were _cursed_." There was a titter of laughter through the crowd and he smirked. "Someone tried to curse you and wound up cursing us both, and it was the best thing to ever happen to me. In that other place, we _found _each other_._ Being there with you for all those months - I was given the chance to realize you were my other half. Without any preconceived notions about who we were _supposed _to be, we just were. Together." He took a breath and he saw tears in her eyes. "I can't imagine my life without you. It would be like walking around with only half of myself. For the rest of our lives, I promise to love you, to laugh with you, to support your dreams. I promise to let you win _some _arguments - " she rolled her eyes and laughed as a tear slipped down her cheek. "I promise to take care of your when you're sick. To be your partner in everything. No matter what." He cleared his throat. "I love you, Hermione Jean Granger. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anything, and I am so happy, so honored, that after today, you'll be my wife." He brought her hands to his lips and kissed her fingers, and she laughed as tears trickled down her cheeks. Quickly, he plucked a daisy from the Harry held for her and tucked it behind her ear.

Hermione laughed lightly and mouthed, _So cheesy,_ with the biggest smile.

"Miss Granger," the officiant said. "Your vows."

Hermione took a deep breath and grinned. "You always have to steal the show, don't you?" she asked with another laugh, and the audience laughed with her. He reached up with his thumb and wiped away a tear, and she pressed her cheek into his hand for a moment.

"Before the curse, we were starting to be friends," she said, readjusting her grip on his hands. "At least, that was my goal. To be your friend. Even then, with all of our baggage, I saw something in you that I wanted to know better."

He nodded and smiled and she took a half step closer to him.

"And even though we weren't friends _yet_, you still tried to save me from that curse, stepped in to take it yourself, and got stuck in that place - that really _wonderful _place - with me. And for nearly a year, I had you all to myself. You read books with me, watched terrible movies, ate mediocre takeout, and let me ramble on and on about the most inane things. We had all those months to learn each other in a way that, if we'd been here, may never have happened." She took a deep breath as a fresh wave of tears started to fall. "You showed me who you were, and you saw me for who I am. We feel so deeply in love, it was like a fairy tale. And then, we came back." Her voice broke. "We came back and I was so afraid that, with the memories of who we were before returned, we wouldn't last. But we _did,_" she whispered. "In spite of people being against us, in spite of whispers and jeers, I had you, and you had me, and that was more than enough." She smiled. "I promise, for as long as we live, to take care of you. When you're sick, when you're tired, when you're happy, I'll take care of you. Because I know you'll take care of me, too." She smirked. "When we argue, I'll let you _think_ you let me win. I won't even rub it in later." He shook his head with a smirk of his own. "I promise to be on your team, no matter what. I promise to build a life with you that we can both be proud of, to help you achieve your goals, to love you through everything." She adjusted her grip in his again. "I love you, Draco, so much. More than anything. And I cannot wait until you're my husband."

Draco was unashamed of the tears welling in his eyes as she finished and he kissed her knuckles again.

The officiant, nearly forgotten by the couple, stepped forward again and motioned for Harry and Ginny to hold out the rings - Draco's was platinum, Hermione's rose gold, both simple, unadorned bands that were magically bound together.

Draco slipped the rose gold ring on Hermione's finger, repeating what the officiant's words with a goofy grin on his normally composed face. His expression reminded Hermione of the way he'd used to be during their time in that other place, when the weight of this world wasn't on their shoulders. As Hermione slipped the platinum ring on his finger, the magic in their rings synced. They gasped as magic surged through them and their hearts, at least for a few moments, beat as one.

"By the power vested in me by the Wizengamot and the Ministry of Magic, I now pronounce you husband and wife." The officiant smiled and took a step back.

There was a beat of silence, of a wonderful tension in the air, and then the newly married pair stepped into one another, his hands cupping her face, her hands going around his waist, and their lips meeting in the most perfect kiss. When they pulled apart, another beat of silence, and then their gathered friends and family were on their feet clapping and whistling. Even Narcissa was smiling as they passed, her hand laying over her heart.

* * *

Hours later, Hermione stood in front of a large mirror, removing her lipstick, heart fluttering like a caged bird behind her ribs. She'd changed out of her dress, and at Draco's request, into a pair of gray sweats and a tank top. When she came out of the bathroom in their rental cabin - the place Draco had found for their honeymoon - Draco was waiting for her in his own sweatpants, sitting on the little couch, a bowl of popcorn on the small table, and a movie paused on the small telly.

Hermione laughed. "_Dune?_" she asked, flopping onto the couch next to him, leaning into his side.

He kissed her cheek, his lips lingering as his warm breath caressed her cheek.

"Do you _really_ want to watch this?" Hermione asked, nose brushing his jaw before placing a kiss there.

"We never finished it before," he said with a smirk. Hermione looked up at him and smiled, then slowly crawled into his lap, her knees falling on either side of his hips.

"Do you remember what happened the first time we tried to watch it?" Hermione asked as she lowered her lips to his. He smirked as his hands wrapped around her hips, grasping her bum. They both remembered their first night together - vividly - even if it had been in that other place.

"Why do you think I picked it for tonight?" he asked as he pinched her bum lightly, making her yelp. He kissed under her jaw, trailing his lips down her neck. "Do you remember our _second_ first time?" he breathed, causing the wet skin of her neck to tingle.

"How could I forget?" she breathed with a laugh as her lips caught his.

* * *

"_We've been engaged in this world for a month. Can you believe it?" Hermione asked as they walked, hand in hand beside the Black Lake, a nervous hitch to her voice._

"_Not really," he said with a smirk. "I can barely believe that you still wanted me once we got back. There, sure, I was a catch, but here?" He shrugged._

_Hermione pulled him to a stop and stepped in front of him, the setting sun making her eyes look warm like cinnamon. She scowled and poked her finger into his chest. "You really have to stop that!" she said. "In the other place, we fell in love. And sure, we didn't remember our pasts together, but we weren't different people in that other place. You were still Draco - the smart, handsome, funny, arrogant, sore-loser you are now - and I was still Hermione - the - "_

"_The beautiful, brilliant, irritating, messy, know-it-all witch you are everywhere." He smirked and she stepped into him, putting her hands on his chest._

"_Exactly," she said, her scowl transitioning into a smile. "Getting to know you there, how could I __**not **__love you here?"_

_He sighed and kissed her forehead, closing his eyes. "I just feel like - " he stopped and kissed her forehead again. "It's just different here. We live in different places, our flat is gone, and - and I miss you.__" His voice was husky._

_Hermione pulled back and in the warm light of the setting sun he saw how pink his cheeks were. _"_Draco," she breathed, and he was taken back to mornings spent watching her in the sunlight that streamed through the window in their bedroom, to nights wrapped in darkness and blankets as they whispered their secrets to each other._

_He looked down at her and kissed her, kissed her like he used to **before,** and the spark that had been missing since their return was suddenly back. It ignited something deep inside her belly and she groaned as his hands found her lower back and pulled her to him._

"_Hermione," he breathed as he pulled back and pressed his forehead into hers, gripping her waist tightly. "Merlin, I miss you."_

"_Where can we go?" she asked, eyes wide. "I miss you, too," she said. "I need you."_

_Draco groaned and pressed his chest against hers. "Can't go to Slytherin," he said. "Too many people we can't trust. Gryffindor?" He kissed down her cheek, stopping just below her chin and kissing below her ear._

"_They're having a party tonight," she sighed. "Too busy."_

_Draco growled in frustration against her neck, making her shiver. "We can just wait," he said, his shoulders slumping. "I love you."_

"_No," Hermione said forcefully, and then blushed. "I miss you, Draco. I miss __this._" _She looked all around until her face lit up, and with a triumphant look on her face, began pulling him toward a willow tree, tucked away near the castle._

_The sun had just sunk into the horizon and the sky was made up of deep purple and magenta. Hermione parted the branches of the weeping willow - thankfully, a very different tree than the whomping willow - and led him beneath the branches._

_Hermione conjured some bluebell flames and placed them in a cup she transfigured from a leaf. Draco removed his robes and laid them down, before transfiguring them into a soft blanket on the ground. They stared at each other for a long moment in the near darkness, chests heaving._

_"Are you sure?" Draco asked into the low light, his voice wavering with insecurity that Hermione didn't understand. "Here, we've never - " _

_With the courage of a Gryffindor, Hermione stepped into him and pressed her lips to his, breathing life into the kiss._

_They moved in a slow-burning frenzy. Her robes fell to the side. They were both wearing their uniform ties and Hermione laughed when Draco cursed as he struggled to remove hers. With fingers that were sure, they unbuttoned each other's shirts, slowly removing the rest of each other's clothing as they went, a practice that felt comfortable and new all at the same time._

_When their clothes were all discarded, they looked at each other for the first time in this world. She trailed her fingers down his sectumsempra scar - knowing what it was from made her heart ache even more than it had the first time she'd seen it. Her fingers trailed over his Dark Mark, rubbing soothing circles, while he lifted her arm and kissed the scars that spelled the nastiest word he knew. He'd kissed her scars before, and he kissed them now, and another piece that had been missing from their lives fell into place. She took his face in her hands and stared into his grey eyes as if asking permission._

_After a beat, Draco took her in his arms, relishing in the feel of her bare skin against his. She grabbed his face and pulled him into a languid kiss, which stoked a fire in both their bellies._

_Moving as if they were of one mind, they lowered to the ground, wrapped around one another. The cloak-turned-blanket was soft - a cushioning charm. Hermione lay there, staring up at him, her dark curls a halo. Draco leaned over her, his finger trailing along her collar bone, then up her jaw, to shift a curl behind her ear._

_He kissed her shoulder. Kissed down her chest, kneading one breast in his hand while he kissed the other. He trailed light kisses down her abdomen, over her hip. His hand brushed over her warmth as he continued to trail kisses down the inside of her thigh. When he came back to her entrance again, he paused. He kissed her there, once, twice, making her moan breathlessly, before traveling back up the other side of her body, over her hip, and taking the other breast in his mouth. She sighed and writhed beneath him as his mouth moved up to her neck, her jaw, her lips._

_He settled himself between her thighs as she loosely wove her fingers into his hair at the back of his neck. He stared down at her, his expression open and honest - he was nervous. This was their first time together in the real world, and he was afraid. Afraid she would reject him. Fingers in his hair insistent, she pulled his lips to hers, kissing away any doubt. He groaned into her mouth as he gently pressed inside of her. Her eyes and mouth popped open wide with a silent gasp as his forehead fell to her shoulder, a shudder passing through his body._

_It felt like coming home._

* * *

Draco slipped his hands under Hermione's shirt and spanned her lower back. "I was so nervous that night," he said against her lips, his thumbs tracing lines down sides. "Nervous you'd change your mind."

Hermione looked down at her from her perch on his lap and pulled back slightly. "So was I." She brushed her nose along his. "I was so worried that you wouldn't want me like you had before."

His arms around her waist tightened. "I was worried that the Hermione Granger who remembered what a prat I was wouldn't want to see me naked." He smirked.

Hermione laughed. "Well, I obviously did," Hermione said, circling his neck with her arms. "Besides, even as a prat you were easy on the eyes.

He captured her lips with a little nip. "So I suppose this," he said, thrusting his still clothing covered body against hers just a little, "will be our _third _first time."

She looked at him, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Our first first time was in your flat." He kissed the little spot on her neck that he knew she loved so much, just below her jaw, and she shivered. "Our second first time was beneath the willow tree." He kissed her neck on the other side, his tongue flicking out against her warm skin, and she sighed. "And now, our third first time will be as husband and wife." He kissed a path to her lips and she melted against him. "Not many people get three first times with the same person."

Hermione smiled against his mouth as she reached for the hem of her shirt and peeled it off. She hadn't bothered to wear a bra. "Well, you know what they say," she whispered as she pulled his shirt off, too, her fingers trailing up his chest, over his scar, to rest on his lean shoulders.

"What?" he asked as he started tugging on her sweatpants, kissing her neck as he went.

"Third time's the charm." She laughed at his incredulous look.

"The first two not up to your standards?" he asked with a smirk as he stood, lifting her with him. He sat her on the ground long enough to tug her pants and knickers down, followed by his own. He picked her up around the waist again and her legs went around his hips, just like they had their first time, only now they were skin against skin - two puzzle pieces that always fit together.

"Oh no, they were, but there's _always_ room for improvement," she said with a devilish smirk.

"Witch," he said as he attacked her mouth and carried her to the cabin's single small bedroom. "I'll show you improvement," he murmured. With a kick, he shut the door behind them, movie and popcorn forgotten. And as he tossed her back onto their bed with a smirk, she laughed and opened her arms as he fell into them.


End file.
